How to Freeze Fresh Strawberries and Enjoy Them Year Round

Strawberries, in season from May through June, are fragrant, red, juicy, and sweet—they're delicious on their own, sliced into fruit salads, or as the cornerstone of dessert favorites. But as much as we adore these berries, they aren't the hardiest. Fortunately, you can freeze strawberries and preserve their juicy, sweet flavor, and enjoy them long after their season is over. We spoke to chefs and recipe developers to find out the best way to store them in the freezer and how to make sure they don't develop ice crystals.

How Long Fresh Strawberries Last

Expect fresh strawberries to last three to five days, says chef Dan Gay of The Beach Rose Cafe in Charlestown, R.I. Their durability depends on where you bought (or picked!) them: "Strawberries that are picked ripe from the vine have a shorter shelf life than their store-bought cousins," he says.

How to Keep Strawberries Fresh for Longer

To keep berries fresh for an extra day or two, gently dry them with a paper towel and store them in a container in the fridge, says Gay. To use up extra berries, try adding them to your lunch, says Sheela Prakash, author of the cookbook Salad Seasons. When making salads, she often pairs fresh strawberries with rhubarb. "The rhubarb adds just the nicest bit of tangy crunch that plays so well with the sugar-sweet berries," she says.

How to Freeze Strawberries

If you find yourself with too many berries to use in a short window of time, there's a simple solution: Freeze them. "Strawberries freeze very well and can be used for many great dishes straight from frozen," says Gay.

Whole or Halved?

There are a few different ways to freeze strawberries. Our favorite method involves flash-freezing them whole or halved. It also makes sense to freeze them in the form you plan to use them; whole berries are difficult to slice when frozen and like boulders in the blender.

How to Flash-Freeze Berries

Strawberries have a high water content, so they're prone to turning soggy and waterlogged when they thaw. To minimize the formation of ice crystals (the real culprit of sogginess, they break down the berries' structure, so they become soft when defrosted), it's best to flash-freeze them. This entails freezing them in a single layer, rapidly exposing them to the freezer's cold air.

Here's how to flash-freeze strawberries, according to Yvette Marquez-Sharpnack, author of Muy Bueno: Fiestas 100+ Delicious Mexican Recipes for Celebrating the Year.

1. Rinse the berries.
2. Use a paper towel to gently blot them dry.
3. Remove the stems. Halve any larger berries.
4. Line a baking sheet with wax paper. Place the strawberries, cut side down, on the sheet, and spread them out.
5. Transfer the sheet, uncovered, to the freezer. Freeze until hard, about six hours.
6. Transfer the frozen strawberries to a freezer bag or container and store them in the freezer.

Do not store them in the freezer door which is subject to temperature fluctuation.

The wax paper and ample spacing between berries prevents them from sticking to the sheet and morphing into a frozen cluster. (Note: Parchment paper can be used in place of the wax paper.)

How Long Frozen Strawberries Last: The frozen berries should retain their peak flavor for about six months. They are still safe to eat after that but their taste starts to deteriorate.

How to Thaw Frozen Strawberries

When it's time to thaw your strawberries, doing so the right way can make a big difference in flavor and texture. Here are the best tips for thawing your berries:

• Transfer the desired amount of berries to a bowl and let them thaw overnight in the refrigerator.
• For quicker thawing, place them in a sealed bag and submerge in cool water for about 30 minutes.
• Avoid microwaving, which can make the berries mushy.
  

Best Ways to Use Frozen Strawberries

"When frozen strawberries thaw, they won't have the same texture as when they are fresh. Plan to use them in dishes where they get mashed up or cooked down," says Gay.

Frozen strawberries are perfect for drink recipes like smoothies and milkshakes, say both Marquez-Sharpnack and Gay. (Or give our Strawberry-Ginger Smash and Strawberry-Rhubarb Sangria a whirl.)

They also work beautifully as a sauce for ice cream or in ice pops, and they can be thawed and used for baked goods like cakes and pies. Prakash loves to simmer frozen berries with a little honey and lemon juice to make a compote for yogurt, oatmeal, and pancakes—especially during the colder months. It's a wonderful reminder of sunnier days, she says.